Shoe with pointed sole and ribbed upper



Nov. 8, 1949 P. F. EBERLE' 2,487,227

SHOE WITH POINTED SOLE AND BIBDED UPPER Filed Dec. 29, 1945 INVENTOR. Pfl/L/P E 535/845.

Patented Nov. 8, 1949 SHOE WITH POINTED SOLE A'Nn Bronco V UPPER- I Philip F. Eberle, San Franciscabalif: Application :Decembeni29, 1945; Serial No :j .637,871

2 Claims. (Cl. 36?.25)

i v iqn re at s t shoes. and par i i:

ar to h e w iqh u e le ibil o t de e v s a b shoe .7 ob oft inv ntien i o vide a h chh n seams la he. ns aa ;.-upp r f. which smad oftwo se ar e e s mount.- ed on a flexible sole insuch a way so as to allow the flexing of the sole, under pressure exerted at the toe w l qutl xe neundu pr s-sur eon Another object of the invention is to providea shoe which is highly flexible between the heel and the instep and the toe so as to allow the flexing of the sole when the weight rests on the toe, for instance, in a crawling attitude, without any undue friction or pressure on the foot, and which engages the contour of the foot so that it remains in position and is prevented from falling off the foot.

Another object of this invention is to provide a shoe which is highly useful and simple in construction. Convenience of arrangement, lightness and comparative inexpense of manufacture are further objects which have been borne in mind in the production and development of the invention.

The essential features of the invention involved in the carrying out of the objects indicated are susceptible to modification, but a preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side view of the shoe;

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of the shoe;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the shoe, the section being taken on lines 3-3 of Fig, 1, and

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the heel portion of the shoe the section being taken on the lines 44 of Fig. 1.

In the herein shoe, a sole l is cut for the right foot and another sole is cut for the left foot so as to conform to the usual contour of the soles of the respective feet. The sole terminates in a peak 2 at the heel and in a substantially aligned peak or point 3 at the toe. It is to be noted that the curvature is such that the peak 2 at the heel is substantially in the middle of the arcuate contour of the base of the heel, but the peak or point 3 at the toe is offset toward the toe portion 4 of the sole I. This sole of the shoe thus fits the contour of the sole of the foot.

The upper of the shoe is made in two portions. The counter portion 6 extends in a substantialh semi-circular contour, as shown in Fig. 4, to conform to the average arc of the back of the heel 2 wall: 8,- The -=counter portion -6 is-held upright and against buckling, byseparated slit edges-9 which latterare brought together to overlap out wardly and aresewed together into a ridge 1 I which extends from the heel-pointer peak-20f the-sole Lupwardly to an-intermediate portion of. the rear edge 8 of the counter-portion 6, andto a-point spaced from-the top-of the edge 8.

This -ridge l l forms, a-reinforcing rib which rendersi the L counter firm s-without any: inside seam and without any projection inwardly of the counter portion 6. The contour of the top edge of the counter portion 6 in this illustration has a high point at the rear at I2, curved side edges l3 on each side, which incline toward the sole l, and a scalloped edge or design at each edge l4 down to the sole I. At each side'and all around the lower edge the soft material of the counter portion 6 is flanged outwardly, as shown in Fig. 3, and this outward flanged edge It all around is suitably secured by sewing, stitching or otherwise to the corresponding edges of the sole I.

The toe and instep portion 1 of the shoe is also cut in one piece and extends in a rearwardly and upwardly inclined front side or edge I! to a tongue l8, which latter extends in continuation with said front edge and above part of the area enclosed by the counter portion 6. The tongue edges are scalloped and curved toward the toe and then terminate in a downward curvature toward the counter at the edge I9. The opposite sides of the toe and instep portion I conform substantially to the toe and instep portion of the foot and extend from edge toedge of the sole l. The edges are bent outwardly to form outward securingflaps at 2| which at the portion 22 overlap the corresponding flaps or flanges I6 of the counter portion 6. The flaps all around are secured by sewing, stitching or by other suitable means to the edges of the sole I. The toe and instep portion 1 is slit from the toe point 3 upward to about the base of the tongue l8 and these slit edges are again turned outwardly and secured together into a reinforcing ridge or rib 23.

The shoe herein described is particularly adapted for use by babies during the crawling age and up to about the age of two. When babies crawl and the toes obtain a grip, the reinforcing ridges hold the shoe in a manner to give suitable support to the babies feet without the shoe coming off. The entire shoe is flexible, but has sufiicient rigidity at the ridges 9 and 23 to hold the two portions of the upper of the shoe in its proper relationship without collapsing. This and the ankle. It extends upwardly as a rear structure permits the making of baby shoes for the respective right or left foot, protecting the shape of the feet and the arrangement of the toes. There are no inside seams. For securing the shoe in place in the usual manner, holes 24 are provided in the counter portion 6 and at the tongue I8 of the shoe through which holes a lace 26 or the like may be inserted in the usual manner to provide a comfortable arrangement for holding the upper of the shoe in position.

I claim:

1. In a shoe of the character described, a sole, a counter portion secured to the sole, sides of said counter portion extending down about the middle of said sole, a toe and instep portion extending upwardly from the toe of the sole toward said counter portion, sides of said instep portion extending downwardly spaced from the side edges of said counter portion near the top and overlapping said side edges of said counter portion near the sole, said sole being pointed at the toe and at the heel and said counter portion and toe and instep portion each having a reinforcing ridge extending from the respective point unwardly from said heel and toe respectively.

2. In a shoe of the character described, a sole, having a contour substantially conforming to the sole of the foot and being pointed at the toe and at the heel, an upper on said sole including a counter portion substantially conforming to the heel and ankle of the foot, a reinforcing ridge REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date D. 39,203 Borchardt Mar. 17, 1908 199,574 Richardson Jan. 22, 1878 307,744 Buck Nov. 11, 1884 373,062 Elliott Nov. 15, 1887 1,290,654 Pollock Jan. 7, 1919 1,429,604 Madinger Sept. 19, 1922 1,514,634 Seely Nov. 11, 1924 1,516,840 Butler Nov. 25, 1924 2,215,924 Grundman Sept. 24, 1940 2,309,582 Fraher et a] Jan. 26, 1943 

